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Trip Report: Liberty of the Seas, Day Four

Day four of the cruise was spent docked in Cozumel, Mexico. Cozumel is a major cruise ship port which means there are lots of excursion options. It also means the areas right around the port have an impressive selection of jewels, clothing and other "high-quality" souvenirs for sale and if you go over one more street you could buy all manner of prescription drugs (no actual prescription needed).

This was our view off our balcony that morning:

Before it was time to get off the boat we went down and had a good breakfast in the main dining room. To try to ward off germs, cruise lines are really good at making sure you always have hand sanitizer available, which in our family is affectionately known as "rub rub." Perry loved the rub rub stations.

We didn't book any specific excursion, instead we found a mini-van taxi to take the group of us to the Chankanaab National Park for the day. The park is huge and for a single entrance fee you have access to pretty much all of it (except for swimming with the dolphins, ziplines and other more extreme activities).

We spent the morning exploring the area, snorkeling, playing on the beach, watching strangers swim with the dolphins and having Perry get kissed by a sea lion.

The ocean and beaches were so pretty and there was good snorkeling literally right off the shore. We found some lounge chairs and took turns playing with perry and snorkeling. There were also pretty gardens to walk through with some replicas of ancient ruins. We were grateful for the umbrella stroller, until we were traversing sand...when it became more of a hinderance than a help.

We thought we left snorkeling just in time to make it for the Sea Lion show. Not totally sure what the mix up was but we showed up right as it was ending. We were sad for a moment then realized that they were lining kids up to get kissed by the sea lion after the show...which was perfect. P didn't know what to think about the big Sea Lion who was getting up close and personal with him and turned away as he tried to "kiss" his cheek but did really well with the whole experience. Better than some of the bigger kids in front of us.

After the sea lion adventure we grabbed a bite to eat. P had more than a couple licks of some popsicles and some fries while I enjoyed a mexican diet coke (or coca-cola light as they call it). The views were just spectacular.

Then we did some swimming in the pool while Granna and Grandaddy did some more snorkeling. After that we were tired and hungry and ready to head back to the ship for lunch and a nap. P passed out on the stroll back to the ship.

FYI - sleeping baby in a stroller does not preclude you from having to put the stroller through the security x-ray...baby has to come out (really?!?). Thankfully that disruption didn't wake him up and we were able to get him smoothly transitioned into his bed for naptime.

This was the night we had earmarked for a date night. Andrew and I had reservations at Chop Steakhouse for dinner and Ann and Gary had graciously offered to keep P for us overnight. So when P woke up from naptime we had to get him bathed and packed and ready for a sleepover.

We did fit in a quick round of putt putt golf. And when I say round I really mean just playing with balls and clubs for about 10 minutes. Perry figured out that the process is far more efficient if you just pick the ball up and place it in the hole.

We had an amazing dinner. The restaurant had an awesome view and we somehow scheduled our dinner reservation right when we were sailing out of Cozumel which was a nice coincidence. The food was awesome. We each got to pick an appetizer (and they brought us a shrimp cocktail as a bonus) and entree and several sides to share. I got the crab cake for appetizer and the lobster and filet mignon for my entree. I only eat lobster on cruises...way too much work and too expensive for a regular occurrence at home. It was really good! The couple sitting next to us was from New England and even they said the lobster was really good...and they would know. For dessert Andrew got the chocolate cake and I got the creme brûlée. Mine came out still on fire...which they will not do in the main dining room due to fire hazard.

Then we got bonus dessert number 3...thanks to Andrew's birthday. I might have put that little tidbit on our reservation so he would get some special treatment. They sang and everything. Your are welcome Andrew. : )

After dinner we went and changed into more comfortable clothes and worked off some of that dinner on the ice skating rink. I haven't skated in forever but I eventually managed to muster enough courage to not hug the rail by the end. It was fun to do together and cool to think we were ice skating while in the middle of the ocean.

We didn't run into P and his babysitters any that night but did run into one of the couples that sat at the table next to us at dinner. They saw us and said "you're free!" haha. They also told us that Perry did great at dinner which was good to hear. We knew they had quiche (his favorite food hands down) on the menu in the main dining room so we figured he would do just fine.

After skating we enjoyed walking around without a baby in tow and went to see the late-night, and always hilarious, love and marriage game show. It did not disappoint for some good laughs.

Our towel animal friend for the night was a monkey.

It was so nice to have a date night at sea and get to stay out past 8 pm. Thanks Granna and Grandaddy!